Fast food

Kerry J. ByrneWednesday, December 28, 2011

ROLL WITH IT: Score a beef on weck sandwich at the All Star Sandwich Bar.

All Star glory

Sunday is both a beginning and an end — the start of the new year but the conclusion of the NFL’s regular season. The mighty New England Patriots tune up for the playoffs on New Year’s Day with a visit from the down-and-out Buffalo Bills.

Buffalo is not a very good football team. But it is a world-class tailgate town. Americans devour billions of chicken wings each year that have been doused in the city’s eponymous hot sauce. And if you want another true taste of Buffalo culinary tradition, dive into a hearty beef on weck sandwich.

It’s rare roast beef sliced thin, doused in au jus and horseradish, and served on a kummelweck bun — that’s a sandwich roll with salt chunks and caraway seeds baked into the top.

The All Star Sandwich Bar in Cambridge serves an incredible beef on weck. Try it at home for New Year’s Day if you’re looking for authentic flavors of Buffalo. (Owners Kosta and Johnny Diamantopoulos are big football fans and welcomed Patriots receiver Chad Ochocinco for an event a couple of weeks ago.)

Also, new in 2012, the All Star Pizza Bar opens in March across the street from the Inman Square sandwich shop and will offer creative thin-crust gourmet brick-oven pizzas, Kosta said.

All Star Sandwich Bar’s Beef on Weck

5 lbs. rump roast

2 T. minced garlic

2 T. kosher salt

2 T. fresh cracked black pepper

1 onion, finely chopped

1 carrot, finely chopped

1 piece of celery, finely chopped

2 c. beef stock

1 c. extra hot horseradish

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Rub meat with garlic, salt and black pepper. Place chopped vegetables in a roasting pan. Place meat on rack in pan. Roast until internal temperature reaches 122 degrees, about 1 hour. Set meat aside. Deglaze pan with beef stock, remove grease and fat that floats to the top, and then simmer stock on stove top for 10 minutes. Strain out vegetables and reserve au jus. Slice beef thin, dip into au jus and pile high on a bulkie roll or kummelweck bun (recipe follows). Slather with horseradish.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine the salt and caraway seeds in a small bowl. Dissolve cornstarch in warm water. Put cornstarch mixture a small saucepan, then stir in the boiling water. Return the mixture to a boil and cook, stirring over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes, until it is thick enough to coat a spoon. Remove from the heat and let cool. Place rolls on a baking sheet. Brush the top of each roll with cornstarch mixture, then sprinkle rolls with salt and caraway seeds. Bake for 4 to 5 minutes or until the tops of the rolls are dry. Makes 12 buns.